(1) Field of the Invention
The invention relates to industrial equipment. More particularly, the invention relates to the detonative cleaning of industrial equipment.
(2) Description of the Related Art
Surface fouling is a major problem in industrial equipment. Such equipment includes furnaces (coal, oil, waste, etc.), boilers, gasifiers, reactors, heat exchangers, and the like. Typically the equipment involves a vessel containing internal heat transfer surfaces that are subjected to fouling by accumulating particulate such as soot, ash, minerals and other products and byproducts of combustion, more integrated buildup such as slag and/or fouling, and the like. Such particulate build-up may progressively interfere with plant operation, reducing efficiency and throughput and potentially causing damage. Cleaning of the equipment is therefore highly desirable and is attended by a number of relevant considerations. Often direct access to the fouled surfaces is difficult. Additionally, to maintain revenue it is desirable to minimize industrial equipment downtime and related costs associated with cleaning. A variety of technologies have been proposed. By way of example, various technologies have been proposed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,494,004 and 6,438,191 and U.S. patent application publication 2002/0112638. Additional technology is disclosed in Huque, Z. Experimental Investigation of Slag Removal Using Pulse Detonation Wave Technique, DOE/HBCU/OMI Annual Symposium, Miami, Fla., Mar. 16–18, 1999. Particular blast wave techniques are described by Hanjalić and Smajević in their publications: Hanjalić, K. and Smajević, I., Further Experience Using Detonation Waves for Cleaning Boiler Heating Surfaces, International Journal of Energy Research Vol. 17, 583–595 (1993) and Hanjalić, K. and Smajević, I., Detonation-Wave Technique for On-load Deposit Removal from Surfaces Exposed to Fouling: Parts I and II, Journal of Engineering for Gas Turbines and Power, Transactions of the ASME, Vol. 1, 116 223–236, January 1994. Such systems are also discussed in Yugoslav patent publications P 1756/88 and P 1728/88. Such systems are often identified as “soot blowers” after an exemplary application for the technology.
Nevertheless, there remain opportunities for further improvement in the field.